2023-06-04 10:58:05
On June 5, 2023, the 50th anniversary of World Environment Day is celebrated, dedicated this year to combating plastic pollution, and which will have CÔte D’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) as its host country under the motto “No plastic pollution”.
half a century It has happened since the beginning of this celebration in honor of the environment, which was first approved by the United Nations General Assembly in 1972. Directed by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and celebrated every June 5 since 1973, the World Environment Day is the largest global platform for environmental disclosure. Hundreds of planned events and activities around the world so that millions of people can celebrate it.
Ivory Coast, host and pioneer country in plastic recycling
Every year a country stars in it, and in this 2023 the host and organizer is CÔte D’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) under the motto “For a planet free of plastics”. The choice of this country is not accidental, since Ivory Coast banned the use of plastic bags in 2014 and since then, it has supported the transition towards reusable containers, wrappers and packaging, becoming one of the pioneering countries in promoting advantages of a circular economy of plastics. Abidjan, the country’s largest city and former capital, has become a hub of innovation focused on tackling plastic pollution. In addition, the government of the Ivory Coast, in collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef), is implementing a school construction program that uses recycled plastic bricks. This project has the participation of the Colombian company plastic concepts.
Even the French entrepreneur Eric Becker has created a tourist attraction call Floating island, located in one of the lagoons on the coast of the Gulf of Guinea near Abidjan. In the construction of this island, they used more than 700,000 recycled plastic bottles.
430 tons of plastic of which less than 10% is recycled
Plastic production has increased exponentially in the last half century. Whereas in 1950 only 2 million were produced, humanity today produces more than 430 million tons of plastic a year, two-thirds of which are short-lived products that in a short time become waste that floods the oceans and , often invade the human food chain and of which less than 10% is recycled. It is estimated that every year between 19 and 23 million tons of plastic waste end up in lakes, rivers and seas. More than 800 marine and coastal species are affected by this pollution.
Single-use plastic products, discarded or burned, not only harm human health and biodiversity, but also pollute a wide variety of ecosystems, from mountaintops to the seabed. plastics are the largest, most damaging and persistent accumulation of marine debris, representing at least the 85% of total marine litter. This means around 50 kg of plastic per meter of coastline worldwide, which, if nothing is done to prevent it, could be triple by 2040.
In addition, microplastics, which are plastic particles with a diameter of less than 5 mm, are infiltrating our food, water and even the air, affecting our health. It is estimated that people ingest more than 50,000 plastic particles each yearand even more if we consider the particles that are inhaled.
Plastics, a climate problem that costs more than 100,000 million dollars
The drastic reduction of unnecessary, avoidable and problematic plastic is crucial to face the global pollution crisis, according to the latest warning report from UNEP: “From Pollution to Solution: A Global Assessment of Marine Litter and Plastic Pollution”. Using a life cycle analysis, it was estimated that in 2015 plastics were associated with the production of 1.7 gigatonnes of CO2 equivalent (GtCO2e), and by 2050 this figure is projected to increase to approximately 6.5 GtCO2e —15% of the global carbon budget. By 2050, greenhouse gas emissions associates to the production, use and disposal of plastics would suppose the 15% of allowed emissionsaccording to the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C.
Every year, millions of tons of plastic waste end up dispersed in the environment, or are sent to destinations thousands of kilometers away, where they are usually incinerated or dumped into bodies of water. The value of plastic packaging waste alone is estimated to represent an annual loss of between 80,000 and 120,000 million dollars.
Recycling is not the solution
Experts dismiss the idea that recycling is a solution to face this crisis and warn about harmful alternatives to disposable products, such as bio-based or biodegradable plastics, which present a chemical risk comparable to conventional plastics today.
The transition to a circular economy can achieve a reduction of more than 80% in the amount of plastics that reach the oceans for the year 2040. In addition, a 55% decrease in virgin plastic production is expected, representing an estimated $70 billion in savings for governments over the same period. Also, this transition would contribute to a 25% decrease in greenhouse gas emissions already the creation of 700,000 jobs additional, mainly in the southern regions of the world.
Historic pact to end plastic pollution
To solve this serious problem, governments, the private sector and other stakeholders need to scale up and implement effective targeted measures. In this sense, last year, 175 nations adopted a resolution unprecedented with the aim of ending plastic pollution and establishing an international agreement legally binding for the year 2024. This document represents a significant milestone in the environmental field, comparable to the Paris Agreement. It is a guarantee so that present and future generations can live in harmony with plastic and are not condemned by its effects.
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